Activities

Claims to be “Independent of any government, political ideology, economic interest or religion… it does not support or oppose any government or political system.”

Disproportionately singles out Israel for condemnation, focusing solely on the conflict with the Palestinians, misrepresenting the complexity of the conflict, and ignoring more severe human rights violations in the region.

In violation of its policy of “impartiality,” Amnesty employs two anti-Israel activists with well-documented histories of radical activism in the context of the Arab-Israeli conflict, Deborah Hyams and Saleh Hijazi, as researchers in its “Israel, Occupied Palestinian Territories and Palestinian Authority” section.

In 2016, Amnesty announced plans to open Middle East & North African regional offices inBeirut, Tunis, and East Jerusalem. The Beirut office was opened, but as of August 2017, the Jerusalem office was not functioning.

In 2017, to mark “50 Years of Dispossession,” Amnesty introduced a campaign calling upon governments to “ban Israeli settlement goods from entering your markets, and to stop companies based in your country operating in settlements or trading in their goods – and help put an end to the cycle of violations suffered by Palestinians living under Israel’s occupation.” This language mirrors that used by the UN bureaucrats preparing the discriminatory UNHCR blacklist indicating the close cooperation between the UN and BDS organizations.

On August 25, 2017, Amnesty posted an article on its website, accompanied by a social mediacampaign, to mark “50 years since Israel issued Military Order 101,” claiming that the law “punishes Palestinians for peaceful political expression.” Amnesty’s analysis of “four facts” grossly manipulates and misrepresents the law (see NGO Monitor’s analysis here).

In August 2017, Amnesty condemned the Israeli government’s decision to close the Al Jazeera bureau in Israel, on the grounds of incitement. The NGO has no expertise on media issues.

In July 2017, during the violence on Jerusalem’s Temple Mount that included the murder of two Israeli police officers, Amnesty International published a press release (July 27, 2017), based on claims originating with “Amnesty International staff at the scene” Magdalena Mughrabi. The press release accused Israel of attacking “peaceful crowds at Jerusalem holy site.” Amnesty further alleged that this was an “entirely unprovoked attack” and that Israeli police used “unnecessary and excessive force to disperse a peaceful gathering,” ignoring that Palestinian rioters “began hurling rocks at security forces” and “some stones fell at the Western Wall plaza below,” forcing the evacuation of groups of Jews praying there.

On May 28, 2016, Amnesty International hostedICAHD-UK’s Spring Conference. One of the main goals of the conference was to “CONNECT current BDS campaigns in the UK with those in I/P [Israel\Palestine.]”

Beginning September 2015, Amnesty co-sponsored a speaking tour in the United States for Bassem Tamimi. Tamimi was convicted in 2012 of encouraging Palestinian youths to throw stones at Israeli soldiers. His appearance in a third grade classroom sparked outrage, and the school’s superintendent denounced the remarks as “inflammatory.” Tamimi has, in addition to inciting violence, expressed support for anti-semitic sentiments including the claim that Israelis detain Palestinian children to harvest their organs and that the Zionists control the media.

Allegations of “war crimes”

Distorts international law, misusing terms like “collective punishment,” “occupying power,” and “disproportionate” in its condemnations of Israel’s Gaza policy.

In July 2016, Amnesty released the document “Time to Address Impunity: Two years after the 2014 Gaza/Israel war,” accusing Israel of war crimes. The document is filled with highly inflammatory and subjective rhetoric, such as accusing Israel of acting “above the law,” perpetrating “relentless” attacks, “unprecedented death and destruction,” “massive bombardment,” and “unrelenting onslaught.” Amnesty accuses Israel of being motivated by “revenge.”

Accuses Israel of “Maintaining its military blockade of Gaza and therefore collective punishment of the 1.8 million inhabitants there, as well as failing, like Palestine, to comply with a UN call to conduct credible investigations into war crimes committed during the 2014 Gaza conflict.”

In July 2015, launched an online “Gaza Platform,” to “map[] Israeli attacks in Gaza” during the 2014 Gaza conflict. The Platform repeats the baseless and distorted accusations of Al Mezan and Palestinian Center for Human Rights (PCHR), does not employ credible research methodology, and reflects Amnesty’s lack of military and legal expertise.

Following the 2014 Gaza war, Amnesty published a 48-page report, “Families under the Rubble,” purporting to document “the devastating toll on civilians and civilian property was out of all proportion to any military advantage [achieved by Israel] from the attack and/or that Israel failed to take necessary precautions to minimize harm to civilians and damage to civilian objects.” By Amnesty’s own admission, its methodology in attempting to investigate was faulty and incomplete, and it cannot possibly possess the requisite information to draw meaningful conclusions.

Following the 2014 Gaza War, Amnesty published a number of reports detailing Hamas’s deadly role in the war. Amnesty did not reflect these findings in its allegations against Israel.

Published a February 2014 report, “Trigger-happy: Israel’s use of excessive force in the West Bank,” alleging that “Israeli forces have repeatedly violated their obligations under international human rights law by using excessive force to stifle dissent and freedom of expression, resulting in a pattern of unlawful killings and injuries to civilians.”

Defending those linked to terror

In 2015, blogger “Elder of Ziyon” revealed that, in 2007, Amnesty campaigner Saleh Hijazi’s Facebook profile picture was a photo of Leila Khaled, a PFLP terrorist and airline hijacker, while in 2012, his profile picture was a photo of Khader Adnan, a leader of the Islamic Jihad terror organization. In addition, while studying at Lawrence University in Wisconsin, Hijazi wrote his thesis on “Yasser Arafat: A Palestinian Prophet in the Formation of Palestinian National Identity.”

Following the January 2011 conviction and sentencing of Ittijah head Ameer Makhoul on charges of spying for Hezbollah, AI claimed, “Ameer Makhoul’s jailing is a very disturbing development…[He] is well known for his human rights activism on behalf of Palestinians in Israel and those living under Israeli occupation. We fear that this may be the underlying reason for his imprisonment.”

In 2010, senior staff member Gita Saghal was suspended after she condemned AI’s alliance with an alleged Taliban supporter.

On August 17, 2015, a series of articlespublished in the Times (London) revealed that Yasmin Hussein, currently Amnesty International’s Director of Faith and Human Rights and formerly Director of International Advocacy, has links to the Muslim Brotherhood and possibly to Hamas.

“Apartheid” rhetoric

On May 12, 2016, Amnesty International held an event together with Al Quds Andalucía, featuring Ahmad Jaradat and Sergio Yahni of the Alternative Information Center (AIC), to mark the 68th anniversary of the “Nakba.” At the event, Irene Carretero of Amnesty International alleged that activists and human rights organizations are harassed and persecuted in order “to prevent them from supporting the BDS movement against apartheid” (NGO Monitor translation).

Kristyan Benedict, Amnesty UK’s “crisis response manager,” has a strong anti-Israel obsession, fueled by global conspiracy theories. On November 19, 2012, during Operation Pillar of Defense, he tweeted: “Louise Ellman, Robert Halfon & Luciana Berger walk into a bar….each orders a round of B52s (inspired by @KarlreMarks Bar quips) #Gaza.” The three people he characterized as war-mongers are British Members of Parliament, all of whom are Jewish. (See here, here and here for more on Benedict’s anti-Israel and antisemitic rhetoric).

In December 2013, admitted to working with the Alkarama foundation, a Geneva-based organization claiming to promote human rights, whose Qatari co-founder, Abd al-Rahman bin ‘Umayr al-Nu’aymi (Nu’aymi), has been accused of financing Al Qaeda and its affiliates in Syria, Iraq, Somalia and Yemen.

On April 21, 2012, ICAHD-UK held its Spring Conference and Annual General Meeting at Amnesty-UK’s Human Rights Action Centre. ICAHD leads BDS campaigns, including accusations of “apartheid,” “ethnic cleansing,” etc.

Related Articles

Amnesty International posted an article on their website to mark “50 years since Israel issued Military Order 101,” claiming that the law “punishes Palestinians for peaceful political expression.” Amnesty’s analysis of “four facts” grossly manipulates and misrepresents the law and is typical of the NGO’s disproportionate singling out of Israel for condemnation.

Amnesty International has followed its standard procedure of adopting a stridently Palestinian narrative in its describing chaos and violence on the Temple Mount as an "entirely unprovoked attack" by Israel on Palestinians.

Amnesty International has condemned the actions taken by the governments of Israel and Iraq in fighting Hamas and Hezbollah, and ISIS, respectively, referring to them as "disproportionate" and "indiscriminate." These accusations are legally and morally flawed, and reflect Amnesty's trying to limit the ability of Western democracies to combat asymmetric warfare.

Gerald Steinberg analyzes claims made in Amnesty International's recent 2016/7 report, illustrating how they lack sources of evidence and validity. The report is just one example of the group's biased stance, stringing together ideological slogans, unsupported accusations, and blanket allegations instead of conducting research to add to the state of human rights in the world today.

While Amnesty International may be considered the most prestigious international NGO, the organization is tainted by a number of scandals. In addition, systematic research shows that its publications contain systematic flaws, erroneous claims, and consistent bias against Israel.

In its condemnations of Israel stopping Palestinian stabbing attacks, Amnesty International relies on faulty evidence and flawed methodology to portray Palestinians as victims and Israeli security personnel as aggressors, regardless of circumstance.

Gerald Steinberg maintains that an independent investigation is required to assess the European Research Council's funding to Forensic Architecture and its partnership with Amnesty International on the pseudo-scientific Gaza Platform.

Journalists attending Amnestys July 29 press conference should be aware that its "Gaza Platform" does not employ credible research methodology or fact finding standards, and therefore should avoid taking its claims at face value.

As with all Amnesty Internationals publications on the Arab-Israeli conflict, its Q&A on the Israel/Gaza conflict, July 2014 contains many methodological flaws, under the faade of legal and military expertise.

While the lack of rights and fundamental freedom for women is one of the most egregious manifestations of autocratic and oppressive regimes in the Middle East, prominent human rights NGOs fail to direct sustained attention to womens rights in this area of the world.

Amnesty International is continuing to lose credibility as a human rights organization, engaging in highly unprofessional anti-Israel advocacy related to the violence from Gaza, falsely blaming Israel alone for re-igniting the conflict and calling for an arms embargo against Israel.

In July 2010, Salil Shetty became the Secretary General of Amnesty International. His appointment follows a major decline in Amnesty's moral reputation and influence. NGO Monitor wrote to Shetty, asking him about the Gita Sahgal incident, Amnesty's bias in the Arab-Israeli conflict, the calls for an arms embargo against Israel, and the blog post of Amnesty-Finland's executive director referring to Israel as a "scum state."